Resilience of the tef value chain in Ethiopia

Following extensive field research by one of our master students (Samuel Hauenstein) on the resilience of the tef value chain, a workshop was held on 2nd August 2015 in Debre Zeit in Ethiopia.

Workshop

Together with our partners, the Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research and NutrAfrica (agro-industry company), the goal of this workshop was to bring together some of the key actors of the tef value chain, ranging from input suppliers, farmers, cooperative unions, injera producers, traders, consumer cooperatives and experts. The workshop allowed participants to first think about what the major shocks are that could harm their respective activities and then, formulate an impact scenario for each shock. In the second workshop session, the participants discussed about what could be effective measures to prepare their activity against drought, which is perceived as the most likely shock that may occur in Ethiopia.

Participants

The participants of this workshop showed great interest to learn from each other on how to strengthen the tef value chain. Interestingly, participants revealed that diversity and connectedness are crucial aspects that allow a proper functioning of their respective activities before and during the occurrence of a drought. Other aspects, such as the lack of capital, was also mentioned to be limiting their ability to develop greater strength against droughts.

The workshop was well received by the participants as an opportunity to link together and exchange ideas on how to build resilience against future shocks. Considering the immense potential of the tef value chain, where the value of the production alone is worth USD 1.6 billion, greater intensification and industrialisation of the tef value chain is needed to make it prepared against any unforeseen disruptions. This would also help to make the tef value chain more competitive in order to make sure that potential added value remains within Ethiopia. Across the tef value chain more research is needed to address specific challenges.